Mount Oyama

by kenji SAITO on July 28, 2015

Determined to get one more hike in before leaving Japan, I found a suitable trail in the town of Isehara in Kanagawa prefecture. Mari kept her mother company and the mountain kept me company today. I slapped on my slippers and caught the two hour sardine packed subway train from Shinjuku to Isehara and then hopped on the Oyama Cable Car bus that left stop #4. Cultural tip: One enters Japanese buses from the back and exits from the front.

Trailhead

I got off at the last stop and walked up a road, passed a couple stream waterfalls and found an unoccupied kiosk that had maps in my language. English not pidgin.

Koma-sando approach

A real hike always starts with stairs. Stairs with words of encouragement.

Shops closed

I was able to walk the souvenir shop corridor unmolested as they were still shuttered. The shop owners are reputedly very aggressive in hawking their stuff. Pays to start early.

Stopped briefly to enjoy the small waterfall tucked away in the forest.

Only the beginning

Completed all 362 steps. Where do I get my stamp? Cable car to the right. Sorry, closed today for repairs.

How much are the fees?

How appropriate. A fitness school at the base of the mountain. Sign me up.

Yagokoro Omoikane Shrine

Shrine dedicated to the Shinto god of wisdom and intelligence. Hope some of it soaks into my noggin.

Onna-zaka Trail

The women’s trail starts on the left and is a more gradual approach that also boasted of “seven wonders.” Most of the “wonders” that I saw were power lines, light poles, fences and construction activities. Modern wonders.

Kosodate-jizou

#2 Wonder – Child Care Bodhisattva. Legend has it that one day, his face grew child like, so if you pray to him, your children will grow up decent looking. Too late for me.

Tsumekiri-jizou

#3 Wonder – Nail Cutting Bodhisattva. Legend has it that he never cut his nails, but all of a sudden his nails were cut by themselves. Moral of the story is if you apply and work hard, results will happen. I missed the rest of the wonders. Guess I need to apply myself more to the trails.

Watch out for swooping hawks. This temple was founded in 755 AD, by a priest that was carried off by a huge hawk and eventually reunited with his parents.

Wash your hands

Soap not included.

Gong the bell

Wake up everybody!

Cable car tracks

Looking down at the empty tracks that parallels the trail going up.

Markers

Stone slabs honoring fallen warrior monks.

Stairs

Marble stairs with chromed railings. Where am I? Disneyland?

Afuri Jinja Shimosha

Click here for the larger image. The lower level was occupied by restaurants, one of the employees couldn’t believe I was hiking to the summit in slippers. Got to represent Hawaii.

Oyama Afuri Shrine

Click here for the larger image. The upper level was occupied by the shrine, statue of the 12 Chinese zodiacs and views of the city below. The holy and spiritual mountain seemed stripped and sterilized by the marbled facade perched here. Out of place. All about the yen.

Five alarm fire

Stacks of old wooden buckets that were once used to fight fires.

Stairs

The steep stairs that goes to the last shrine on the summit.

Trail

Back to nature. Left the steps and stairs behind.

Married couple

A pair of sugi pine trees that are supposed to be 500-600 years old.

Trail

I walked the Oyama trail as it meandered up the mountain side, lost in her silence.

Tengu rock

Legend has it that a tengu, legendary bird like creature, made a hole in this rock with its beak.

Rest spot

Time to replace my sweat with Pocari sweat. Humidity was ridiculously high.

Rocky Trail

I got to test my “climbing slippers” on the assorted boulders and rocks that lined the trail.

Summit Torii

The end is near.

Afuri Shrine

Afuri refers to the high amount of clouds and rain this mountain receives. Lived up to its name, without the rain.